Staff Profile

Dr Liz Spruin

Senior Lecturer

School: School of Psychology, Politics and Sociology

Campus: Canterbury

Tel: 01227 923766

Profile summary

I am an Investigative Psychologist who joined Canterbury Christ Church University in September 2013. I currently work as a Senior Lecturer and Director of the Justice Support Dogs International Lab. Before coming to CCCU I worked with the University of Kent and Her Majesty’s Prison Service as a facilitator for the Fire Intervention Programme for Prisoners (FIPP). I obtained my undergraduate degree in Psychology from Acadia University, Canada. In 2009 I completed my MSc in Forensic Psychology at the University of Kent. My dissertation was on the attachment styles of rape-prone men. Following the completion of my MSc, I went on to complete my PhD in Investigative Psychology at the IRCIP; this was done under the direction of Professor David Canter. My PhD thesis explored the criminal narratives of mentally disordered offenders. Whilst at the IRCIP, I worked within secure hospitals, specializing in the development and evaluation of programs for reducing/preventing crime for a range of Mentally Disordered Offenders (MDOs), with particular interest in offenders with ASD and personality disorders.

Whilst at CCCU, I have worked on a number of projects pertaining to vulnerable women, short break schemes for children with Autism, rape myth acceptance across different cultures and the emotional experience of MDOs. Most recently, I have been working with the criminal justice system and witness support services to explore the use of specially trained dogs throughout the criminal justice system. The aim of this research is to investigate the benefits of using these dogs in supporting victims and witnesses of crime. I also teach modules related to forensic and investigative psychology within the undergraduate and post-graduate programmes. I am also the international lead for the department of psychology.

Research and knowledge exchange

My current research focuses on implementing and evaluating the use of specially trained dogs throughout the criminal justice system. This research is being carried out in cooperation with the Policing Department and in conjunction with a number of local (i.e., Witness Services, Court and Tribunal Services, Kent Police) and international (i.e., Courthouse Dog Foundation) organizations. The project aims to produce the first global evaluation within this area, which will further help inform criminal justice agencies and practitioners with evidence of how these dogs could benefit victims and witnesses throughout the criminal justice process. We hope that building this type of evidence base will further open up these practices to countries such as the UK, where such practices are not currently established.

The importance of the research has been recognised both internationally by the Chief Constable of the Vancouver Police and the Courthouse Dog Foundation in 2016, and nationally by the BPS Division of Forensic Psychology, along with the Police and Crime Commissioner and High Sheriff of Kent in 2017.

Spruin, E., Abbott, N., & Holt, N. (2017). Examining the experiences of a short break scheme amongst adolescents with disabilities (service users) and their parents. International Journal of Disability, Development and Education, 64, 1-15.